by Judy Johnson, Ph.D.
March 4, 2019
We work in an age of constant technological advancement. As younger generations enter the workforce, so to comes a need to adapt to a more technically savvy employee. You can get the ball rolling as early as your onboarding by incorporating virtual reality (VR) and other on-trend tech applications. An employee’s first few months at your company is pivotal. That’s when they establish expectations of their job.
The first six months spent at an organization are also the timeframe in which an employee decides to stay with your company. That’s right, 90% of employees know within half a year if they’re going to stick around. This is part of what makes the onboarding process such a critical component of workforce planning. Younger employees want an environment where they can thrive, and that often includes leveraging the latest technology. You can set the tone for their work life by incorporating tech into your onboarding processes.
Bosses and coworkers obviously have a huge impact on an employee’s job satisfaction and this greatly influences whether a new employee will continue with your company. Even if you like a job, feeling as if you don’t fit in to the work environment makes every day difficult.
This is one of the ways VR for onboarding can help. VR can be used to help new employees interact with global teams, off-site executives and remote coworkers. It helps introduce them to the culture of the workplace and feel more connected to their job and teammates.
With VR you can begin introducing new employees to coworkers before they are even on site. What’s more, if your new hire is a remote worker, VR can help you integrate them with the home office in a much more significant way. There are even advances in VR now, such as Oculus Rift, that can translate things such as body language as well as other non-verbal cues. This can help make virtual meetings feel much more realistic and personable as well as cut out some of the stress of initial meetings.
VR training can be a game changer when it comes to training for dangerous or high-risk jobs. A new employee can get hands-on training without actually “getting their hands dirty.” For example, medical professions can use VR to train new employees on how to deal with medical situations without putting any patients at risk. They can complete a VR trainings before ever even touching an actual human body.
Hands-on VR training can help teach new hires develop necessary skills as well as get (close to) real world experience. It’s not just good for health-related professions. VR can be used for training and adapting a new sales team, manufacturing, or whatever industry requires a working knowledge before starting the job. New hires can practice repeatedly to create a smooth process before ever interacting with customers or equipment.
In addition to building up confidence in new employees, hands-on VR training also takes the onus off seasoned employees and managers to do basic training, ensuring your workplace maintains its efficiency even while onboarding someone new. A new employee will still need some guidance adapting to the company, but with VR for onboarding practices in place, the basic foundation will already be built in.
Let’s face it, no one wants to do another trust fall or wait for a monthly report to see how they stand among their co-workers. Employees often like contests and gamified ways of encouraged hard work, but they get tired of the same old thing.
If you want to motivate the workforce of tomorrow, VR gamification is the way to go. Use these games to offer experiences that are multi-sensory. Allow for points, badges and other ways of recording progress. Instead of sitting a new employee in a room to watch a 45-slide deck about company policies, try creating the VR business equivalent of a TV game show, complete with industry relevant quizzes.
Creative methods for employee onboarding, such as VR, can make a huge impact to the employee experience right off the bat. Use the form below to schedule a casual discussion with our Organizational Effectiveness experts about how we can help improve your team's collaboration and performance.